Regretting The Wife He Threw Away

Stewart glanced at Julia, hesitated for a moment, and finally spoke in a low, heavy voice. "About what's been happening online, I—”

"Stewart."

A gentle voice called from the hallway. It was Rosita.

Stewart paused, turning around with a slight furrow in his brow. "What are you doing here?"

Rosita, sunglasses and a mask covering most of her face, glanced around nervously before speaking in a whisper. "I came in for a follow-up appointment and ran into Ethan. He told me Ms. Kensington and Ms. Hudson were both here." She sounded innocent-almost too innocent. After a beat, she added, "I didn't expect to see you as well."

Inside the hospital room, Julia caught sight of Rosita and immediately tried to get out of bed.

Briony rushed to stop her. "Mom, you're still on an IV. You can't get up right now."

"But what do we do? The rumors have gotten so out of hand that Mrs. Wentworth herself came looking for us!" Julia gripped Briony's hand tightly, her anxiety spilling over. "Bryn, you need to go to Mrs. Wentworth and apologize. Tell her you promise you'll never, ever entertain any improper thoughts about Attorney Wentworth again!"

Briony stared at her mother in disbelief.

"Mom, you've got it all wrong. This isn't what you think, I-"

"Bryn!" Julia cut her off, her frustration clear as she frowned. "Why won't you

matter how remarkable Attorney Wentworth is, he's a married man. You can't

look

Why?

even her own mother see

the last five years of her

was only now, in this moment, that Briony truly understood. All along, what Stewart had given her in this marriage wasn't salvation—it was a carefully crafted boomerang, one that would come

end. For her, it was the messy beginning

worse.

years! Never in her wildest dreams had Briony imagined that the man she'd loved so dearly

protect Rosita's reputation, Stewart had never given Briony

she realized, wasn't worth a

to hide the disappointment and

her, why should she

out of

at Julia, her voice trembling but resolute, she asked, "Mom, I'm your daughter. Why

her hand. Sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, she stared at her daughter, her eyes glistening with tears as a realization dawned on